Property tax rate lowered

To give some relief to residents, Wylie City Council last week approved slashing the property tax rate by almost seven cents to a level at which most homeowners will see no increase in their tax bill from last year.

Council members approved a resolution to propose a property tax rate of 78.1 cents per $100 assessed valuation at their meeting Tuesday, Aug. 8. The tax levy in 2017 was 84.89 cents.

The proposed rate is slightly less than the 2018 effective rate of 78.1014 cents, a levy at which the average property owner will not experience an increase in their ad valorem tax. The city will still generate more property tax money than it did last year because of new property added to tax rolls.

City staff based earlier budget calculations on a nine percent increase in property values and 2-cent decrease in the tax rate, but calculations were reworked at the lower tax rate when Collin Central Appraisal District released certified tax values last month showing a 13.87 percent increase in values.